The Strange Fates of 15 Iconic Movie Props

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The Strange Fates of 15 Iconic Movie Props

When you’re reclining passively, stuffing popcorn into your drooling maw, it’s hard to notice how much work goes into a movie. From your place in the theater or your futon, you’re simply gazing into a window to Pandora or Tatooine or Jenna Rink’s New York City, but -- not to shock you or anything-- none of those places are real. They’re the products of painstaking labor by people whose whole jobs are to be invisible (sorry, AI bros, you can't automate this job yet).

That means a lot of their work ends up being more recognizable than the movie stars frolicking around it, but it also means a lot of it ends up being stashed in someone’s attic (or worse -- so much worse) and forgotten about. From Dorothy’s dress to the freaking Death Star, so many relics of Hollywood glory have been found in junkyards, some dude’s house, or even an actual archeological dig.

Just When You Thought It Was Safe

The Jaws shark was found in a random junkyard. CRACKED.COM The last shark made from Joe Alves's iconic mold languished for years before it was restored to hang over the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, where it definitely won't seek revenge.

SyFy 

Kubrick’s Baby (No, Not Any of His Movies)

Space Odyssey's star child wasn't found until Kubrick died. CRACKED.COM It went missing after filming wrapped but it was found in the director's house four whole years after his death, which is arguably both the most and least normal place for it.

Atlas Obscura 

In France, It’s Called “Vandalisme With Cheese”

Vincent Vega's Chevy Malibu was the victim of an attempted stripping. PULP FICTION CRACKED.COM It was stolen from Tarantino during filming, and wasn't seen again for nearly 20 years, when cops caught two guys who had no idea what they were stripping for parts.

Yahoo 

The Spy Who Abandoned Me

James Bond's submarine car was sold for $100. CRACKED.COM It happened to be in a storage container that some dude bought with no idea what was inside. Apparently, the original owners had stopped paying their rent in 1987.

NBC News  

Vehemently Not a Friend of Dorothy

Dorothy Gale's dress was found in a shoebox at a Catholic school. THE WIZARD OF OZ CRACKED.COM One of the dresses Judy Garland wore was somehow given to a Washington, D.C. priest/drama teacher, who promptly lost it for decades. It was eventually found in the school's mail room.

IndieWire  

What If It Was Turned Into Curtains?

One of Scarlett O'Hara's dresses was found on the floor at a costume company. GONE WITH THE WIND CRACKED.COM They apparently had no idea what it was until a former Universal executive happened to wander in. They gave it to him for twenty bucks because they were just going to throw it away.

Vanity Fair  

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